Owner: phatcatholic apologetics URL:http://phatcatholic.blogspot.com Join Date: Tue, 05 Jun 2007 21:13:44 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: "phatcatholic apologetics" is a blog devoted to defending the Catholic faith via Q&A's, debates, tracts, papers, and an extensive collection of links to the best Catholic resources on the internet. Site statistics:Click here
Mark Shea and Our Crybaby Culture 2007-06-14 18:06:00 Props to Mark Shea for his cover story in the June 2007 issue of Crisis Magazine, which hit the shelves today. It's about our insecure, cry-me-a-river, woe-is-me culture that whines and moans every time the wind blows --and I wish I could sign my name to it. I mean, really, Mark, can I take credit for your article because you totally nailed my stance on the subject.All of the "Professionally Aggrieved Grievance Professionals" get called out: African Americans, homosexuals, Native Americans, Irishmen, feminists, environmentalists, animal rights activists, atheists, and yes, Christians too. But, "When it comes to sheer childish inability to cope with a world not to their liking, nobody does it like Muslims." AMEN. This part on profiling is particularly good: This peculiar conviction that, “If you’ve seen one Abrahamic religion, you’ve seen ‘em all,” also apparently governs much of our policy in transportation safety. Alloyed with our peculiar fear and shame over the possibilit
A Holy Card for Every Day 2007-06-14 14:43:00 I found a new blog today called Holy Cards for Your Inspiration. It is hosted by "Micki", who has an extensive personal collection of holy cards. Each day a new card is posted from the collection, along with whatever message happens to come along with it.I'm pretty sure I could spend all day looking at these holy cards. This one is one of my favorites:There is something very startling about this image. It's not every day that you see a young boy peaking out from inside a tabernacle. But, the boy is Jesus, and so in an extraordinary way we are reminded of His Real Presence in the Eucharist. It's one of those images that jolts you out of your glazy-eyed expression and wakes you up to the reality of the Eucharist and of Eucharistic Adoration.There are other great cards too. Check it out!Pax Christi,phatcatholic
Update on Torture Debate 2007-06-13 14:31:00 I was tired and frustrated when I made my earlier post on torture, so I didn't have the time or the energy to find all of Zippy's posts in the debate. But, this has now been remedied. See my post on torture again for Zippy's contribution. I felt like the only fair thing to do was to go back and add them in. Plus, this will keep you all from having to look up his posts on your own. Also, I do realize that I am relying heavily upon Christopher's round-ups for everything that took place up to Nov. 14, '06, so if any of the participants involved feel that I have left something out, please let me know. It was really difficult for me to get a handle on the flow of the debate so far after the fact.Pax Christi,Johnny-Come-Lately Read more:Update
, Torture
, Debate
Art as Servant: St. Michael the Archangel 2007-06-13 09:33:00 Check out the following drawing of St. Michael
the Archangel by David Myers, along with his explanation of the drawing:"I have wanted to do this drawing for a long time. It is my answer to every bad representation of Saint Michael that I have ever seen. I mean, is it just me, or shouldn't someone known as "the general of the armies of the Lord" look like someone who can stomp a hole in the devil's hind quarters? Most of the traditional images of St. Michael leave me with a bad taste in my mouth, like I've eaten something with too much sugar in it. I don't want to see some androgynous fairy dancing a ballet on the head of a more manly looking satan, but a butt-kickin' Prince of Angels glorious in his victory over evil!I don't claim that my version is the definitive image of the incorporeal, beautiful Archangel Michael, but I think that it does convey a little more of the strength given him by his Creator. Incidentally, in a funny spiritual exposition, I modeled for both Michael an
Archdiocese of Louisville Finally Gets a Bishop 2007-06-12 21:57:00 I lived in the Archdiocese of Louisville
for almost two years before I moved to Steubenville to go to FUS. My twin brother Matt is a seminarian for the Archdiocese. Needless to say, I have been very anxious to see who the next bishop will be, ever since the retirement of Archbishop Thomas Kelly last July. Well, the rumors are true. Bishop
Joseph E. Kurtz of the diocese of Knoxville, TN will be the new bishop for 200,000 Catholics in the Archdiocese of Louisville, KY. The following article is from Spero News. Also see Whispers in the Loggia, the last several posts from The School of Mary, and the biographical information on Bishop Joseph E. Kurtz from the Diocese of Knoxville website. - - - - - - - - - -Spero News -- Tuesday, June 12, 2007This morning the Holy Father announced that he has appointed a new archbishop for the Archdiocese of Louisville. The new head of the archdiocese is Bishop Joseph Kurtz who has been the bishop of Knoxville, Tennessee for the past seven years.Bishop Kurt Read more:Finally
The Torturesome Debate on Torture 2007-06-12 13:07:00 A reader emailed me the following question, and I cringed when I read it: As a member of a military family I'm concerned about the issue of torturing enemy combatants, could you please tell me whether it is a sin or not.Allow me to explain. I used to think that this was an open-and-shut case: torture is wrong. After all, the Church seems rather clear on this point: CCC 2298: "In times past, cruel practices were commonly used by legitimate governments to maintain law and order, often without protest from the Pastors of the Church, who themselves adopted in their own tribunals the prescriptions of Roman law concerning torture. Regrettable as these facts are, the Church always taught the duty of clemency and mercy. She forbade clerics to shed blood. In recent times it has become evident that these cruel practices were neither necessary for public order, nor in conformity with the legitimate rights of the human person. On the contrary, these practices led to ones even more degrading. It i Read more:Torture
, Debate
Infallibility and the History of the Church 2007-06-11 22:17:00 What follows are my answers to a series of questions that I recently received on the infallibility of the Church
and how this squares with the low moments in her history. It does seem odd at first that a Church filled with sinners could still make authoritative and incorruptible statements about faith and morals, but this is in fact what Jesus willed for his people.Does the Catholic Church today view Catholic Authority as infallible?If it does, how can you justify evil acts by Popes?Infallibility doesn't mean "never sinning." It "means protection from error when speaking authoritatively." The biblical authors wrote inspired Scripture, which is a far greater act, yet they were still sinners. Jesus did not promise that the leaders of the Church would never sin. Instead, He promised that the Holy Spirit would guide them into all truth --and that's a very different thing.How can you reconcile the shift of power throughout Catholic History
between Counsel and the Papacy? -at times there e
Perfect Timing 2007-06-15 22:28:00 When I made the Catholic quotations widget that is in my sidebar, I just put in quotations one after the other, without giving a whole lot of thought to whether or not the quotations matched up with feast days, or holydays, or anything like that. Except for Christmas, the whole process was entirely random.That's why I was really happy to see today's quotation, on the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus: The heart has it's reasons of which reason knows nothing--Blaise Pascal, PenseesHow perfect is that!?!? The scandal of the Cross is unreasonable to a great many people, yet the Sacred Heart of Jesus has its reasons. It intended to endure unspeakable suffering so as to pour out blood and water for the salvation of all mankind.Sacred Heart of Jesus...have mercy on us.Pax Christi,phatcatholic Read more:Perfect
, Timing
Sacred Heart of Jesus, Have Mercy on Us! 2007-06-15 12:17:00 Today is the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart
of Jesus
. Reserve some time on this day for Eucharistic Adoration and for praying the novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I also recommend the following for spiritual reading, as you contemplate the Heart that is enflamed with love for sinners."Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; for love is strong as death, jealousy is cruel as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, a most vehement flame" (So 8:6)."For our God is a consuming fire" (Heb 12:29).Enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus: Sacred ScriptureDoctrinal Foundation of Devotion to the Sacred HeartCaritate Christi Compulsi (On The Sacred Heart)Miserentissimus Redemptor (On Reparation To The Sacred Heart)Haurietis Aquas (On Devotion To The Sacred Heart)Homily of the Canonization Mass for Saint Claude La ColombiereThe Revelation of the Sacred Heart of JesusThe Liturgical Theology of the Solemnity of the Sacred HeartHeart of Jesus, Have Mercy!Devotion to the Sacr
Back to the 'Boro 2007-06-21 14:43:00 I'm going home to Owensboro, KY tonight for my brother's wedding. Please pray for me that I return home safely (it's a 7.5 hr drive), and pray for my brother and his future wife that their marriage will bring them each closer to God and His Church. Since this weekend promises to be pretty busy, I doubt I'll have time for blogging. But, I'll be back on Monday with Part 3 of my debate with "seal" on the deuterocanonical books (see Part 1 and Part 2), as well as a list of cool websites for you to check out.Stay tuned!Pax Christi,phatcatholic
Mary Poppins and Christology 2007-06-20 12:51:00 In light of today's Daily Catholic Quotation ("The world trembled and groaned to find itself Arian."), check out this song on the Christological controversy of the early Church, set to the tune of "Supercalafragalisticexpialadocius." I LOVE IT!! Too bad it took more than a spoon full of sugar to get rid of the Arians.Patristic MelodyLyrics by Dan IdzikowskiUm diddle diddle um diddle ayUm diddle diddle um diddle aySuperchristological and HomoousiosisEven though the sound of them is something quite atrociousYou can always count on them to anathemize your GnosisSuperchristological and HomoousiosisUm diddle diddle um diddle ayUm diddle diddle um diddle ayNow Origen and Arius were quite a clever pair.Immutable divinity make Logos out of air.But then one day Saint Nicholas gave Arius a slap--and told them if they can't recant, they ought to shut their trap![chorus] Oh, Superchristological and Homoousiosis...One Prosopon, two Ousia are in one Hypostasis.At Chalcedon this formula gave our fa Read more:Mary Poppins
On the Canonicity of the Deuterocanonical Books: Part 2 2007-06-19 14:02:00 I guess I should have expected seal's second response to me. Notice how condescending he is. He's practically talking down to me like I'm a three-year old. I started out by addressing his approach, which probably wasn't wise because that sort of thing tends to derail a debate, but I felt like I had to say something. He deserved correction at least once. From now on, I'm not going to say anything more in the debate about it. You have to let that sort of thing roll off, ya know? [phatcatholic wipes the dirt off his shoulder] - - - - - -Seal, why do you have to be so condescending when you respond to me? You're practically belittling and making fun of what I believe in. Plus, you're talking down to me like I'm some kid. Try to be more charitable dude, and please, stop calling me "cookie."Let's not short change the kid now.... I clearly made more points then this. Such as Christ calling the Sandhedrin Children of the Devil which you cleverly left out. Also that Christ is the LOGOS Read more:Books
On the Canonicity of the Deuterocanonical Books: Part 1 2007-06-19 13:27:00 This is one of the debates I mentioned in my last post. The deuterocanon (ie. "second canon") is a set of seven books--Sirach, Tobit, Wisdom, Judith, 1 and 2 Maccabees, and Baruch--as well as additions to Daniel and Esther. This debate was well underway when I arrived. Usually, I don't like to get into debates that are already well-developed, but I noticed that a few people were using the "quotation equals canonicity" fallacy so I wanted to at least post the tract I had written on this subject (make sure you read that first). Of course, that drew out "seal", who is always trying to refute me whenever he gets the chance. Here is my first response to him. - - - - - -I'll chime in on the convo. What I have gathered thus far is that Cruz, Jnorm, and Phat Catholic are proponents for the Apocrypha to be used as devotion and the latter two may perhaps include it in Canon. Now I've read through all of Phat Catholic's side by side quotes of Christ and the teachings of the Aprocrypha and I d Read more:Books
Poll-Release Monday #20 2007-06-18 14:01:00 Here is this week's poll question: What do you think of the new background image?Keep itDitch itI wanted to try something different, something a little more "summery". I like it. I think it matches my blog colors pretty well too. Let me know what you think (the poll is towards the top of my sidebar). Also, click the link below the poll and tell me why you voted the way you did.As for last week's poll ("Which anti-Catholic claim is the most difficult one for you to answer?"), there was a decent turn-out. Here are the results:It looks like most of my readers have a hard time vindicating the Church's role during the Holocaust. It definitely takes a lot of scholarship to figure out what actually took place, and there are a lot of books and bogus websites out there that accuse the Church of either directly aiding in the killing of Jews, or of standing by and watching it happen. Thankfully, many scholars have risen up within the last few years to defend Pope Pius XII and the Church's act Read more:Release
, Monday
This Just In... 2007-06-18 12:07:00 Here are a few updates from my neck of the woods: Ever wanted to know how fast you can type? I found this today because I needed to know my words per minute (wpm) for a resumé I was filling out. It's pretty cool. Kinda fun too. Make sure you start typing as soon as you see the first word. My gross wpm was 58 on the first test. Leave a comment and let me know what your wpm are (let's see who's the fastest).Go here to download audio and video from previous FUS conferences. Pretty good stuff there. I wish there was more. The "Defending the Faith" conference is pretty dope, if you ever get a chance to go.Everyone please pray that I get this job with the Social Security Administration. I'll just be doing random stuff in the office, but it pays $12.35 an hour and I'll be working full time (40 hrs./wk.) until the end of September. So, it will be a great way for me to make a lot of money over the summer. There's also a possibility that they will keep me on part-time after September, whi
Updates to the Sidebar 2007-06-28 14:55:00 I added two new things to the sidebar, just on a trial basis: my facebook badge and a messenger (or tagboard). I'm still messin with the colors for the messenger. Anyway, leave a comment and let me know what you think about each one. Keep it or ditch it?Pax Christi,phatcatholicUPDATE: It appears that after a few posts to the tagboard, an ad appars at the top. I have no control over that, unless I pay for the Premium service. Read more:Sidebar
St. Peter Julian Eymard on Hearing the Mass 2007-06-28 14:12:00 Check out this YouTube video I found, thanks to the YouTube Summer Project. It's on the method of hearing Mass by meditation on the Passion. I realize that St. Eymard has in mind the Latin Mass, but there's no reason why his words can't apply to the Novus Ordo Missae either. I particularly enjoy the meaning given behind the various vestments of the priest.Leave a comment and let me know what you think. For more on St. PeterJulian
Eymard, go here and here.Pax Christi,phatcatholic Read more:Hearing
God Is Good 2007-06-28 10:33:00 I like that little guy, so I think I'm going to use him any time I have good news to share :D.Anyway, several things have happened recently that have been really great! First of all, the wedding last weekend was awesome. Everyone said I did a good job reading. The wedding reception was one of the funnest things I've done in a loooong time. I feel closer to Ben's new wife now, which is huge because there's been a distance between us for as long as I've known her. It's just good to feel better about the woman my brother is going to spend the rest of his life with.Most importantly, I walked away from that weekend which a strong awareness of how blessed I am to have such an amazing family. I can't even describe how awesome my family is. My dad has 11 siblings. Most of them have at least two children. That's a huge family. What's great is that we all get along. We all love each other. There is no fighting. No estrangement from that one uncle who no one talks about. Just an intense
Update on the YouTube Summer Project 2007-06-26 14:35:00 I updated the YouTubeSummerProject
to contain all of the videos that you all have submitted so far. As many of you know, my plan was to slowly catalogue all of the orthodox Catholic videos on YouTube and make a website with these videos categorized and embedded. Well, Travis Boudreaux already made the website, but that doesn't mean I can't still do the cataloguing! A directory of links to YouTube videos would still be very helpful, so that's what I'm going to do. Don't steal my freakin idea!! This one is mine.Keep it coming with the submissions. Remember, check the list before you submit a video. To submit a video, just leave a comment to this post. Also, I know that the list would be easier to read if I would just hyperlink all of the titles, but honestly, it's easier for me to compile the list if I can just copy-and-paste the title and the url for each video right beside each other. It's too time-consuming to type out the "a href" tags.Pax Christi,phatcatholic Read more:Update
On the Canonicity of the Deuterocanonical Books: Part 4 2007-06-26 12:36:00 After my last response, "seal" clarified himself and said that he never intended to endorse the argument "Redeemed" made against the book of Sirach, that it should be rejected because it shows "cruelty to slaves & low and oppressive views of women." So, Sirach is now vindicated, as far as cruelty and oppression is concerned. Seal is more interested in the doctrinal elements that Redeemed mentioned. Once we cleared that up, seal responded to my evidence for almsgiving to atone for sin and prayers for the dead in the canonical books. Here is my engagement of that response. - - - - - -Before we go any further with this, I need clarification as to where you stand regarding two points of mine:Do you agree that the NT references the DB's, as well as the Septuagint, which included the DB's?Do you agree that, if it is a rule for canonicity that a book be referenced in the NT, then the DB's should be included?You also haven't given your evidence for why Wisdom, Judith, Baruch, 1 Macc, and t Read more:Books
In Defense of Pope Pius XII 2007-06-25 17:31:00 Check out this YouTube video on the role of Pope Pius XII and the Church during the Holocaust. The impact is made more by the images than by the content, but it is still an effective witness.For more information in defense of Pope Pius XII and the Church during the Second World War, go here.Pax Christi,phatcatholic Read more:Defense
This and That 2007-06-25 15:00:00 Also as promised, some cool stuff I've found browsing the internet: Go to Maria Lectrix and you can download audio files of a woman named "Maureen" reading excellent works of fiction and non-fiction from the public domain. Her collection of completed religious works is great. It's not every day that you can listen to St. Cyril's Catechetical Lectures on the way to work! For all of the Christian works that she has recorded or is currently recording for your enjoyment, go here. For the Fathers, go here.Speaking of the Fathers, I found another great website for information on and works from the early Church Fathers: The North American Patristics Society: Internet Resources. It's basically a directory of links, which I always enjoy.Jeffrey Robert Adams has two great podcasts: The Summa Cast and Blendedfolk. In the Summa Cast, Adams reads from Aquinas' Summa Theologiae. In Blendedfolk, each episode consists of Catholic apologetics, Catholic trivia, a conversion story, and reviews of ot
On the Canonicity of the Deuterocanonical Books: Part 3 2007-06-25 13:10:00 As promised, here is Part 3 in my debate with "seal." Also see Parts 1 and 2.I'm sorry Phatcatholic that you feel that way about my speech towards you. And I won't call you cookie again. The word cookie means cookie by the wayIt's all good.I thought that you were following the thread so maybe you overlooked redeemed's post....I remember reading his post earlier, but I thought you would have examples of your own. I can respond to these though.Please account for these passages from the DB's... Canonical Scripture and verse please.You got it. Redeem's first objection was with Second Maccabees: "II Macc. 12:41-45 offers prayers and offerings for the dead"Believe it or not, there's evidence for this in your canon too:1 Ki 17:20-22 And [Elijah] cried to the LORD, "O LORD my God, hast thou brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?" 21 Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried to the LORD, "O LORD my God, let this child's soul c Read more:Books
Poll-Release Monday #21 2007-06-25 12:44:00 Here is this week's poll: How long has it been since you went to Confession?Less than 1 week1 week2 weeks1 month6 months1 yearMore than 1 yearI was thinking today about my own need to go to Confession and I thought it would be interesting to see how often my readers avail themselves of this sacrament. I usually go every Saturday, but I was unable to go last weekend because of all the wedding craziness. Vote in the poll (see my sidebar) and tell me how often you go to confession. There is also an "Other" option for those who haven't been in 3 weeks, or some other timeframe that I didn't include. If you choose "Other", make sure you type in your answer in the space provided at the bottom of the poll. Also, don't forget to click the link below the poll and tell me why you voted the way you did.As for last week's poll ("What do you think of the new background image?"), here are the results:It looks like most of you like it, so I'll keep it. But, for those who voted "No," don't worry Read more:Release
, Monday
Rock of the Church Handout 2007-07-02 10:50:00 I uploaded a new file to the "My Files" Box at the bottom of my sidebar. It's a handout on Mt 16:16-90 and how a wealth of Protestant biblical scholarship affirms the various claims that Catholics make about the passage. Note that each quote is from a different protestant scholar. I did this to show the broad range of scholarship on this topic. I think it turned out pretty good. Feel free to use it however you wish, as long as you don't take credit for it.Pax Christi,phatcatholic Read more:Church
When Was I Canonized? 2007-06-30 17:58:00 As a protestant christian am i a Saint, or is that title reserved for special, really holy, canonized people like Saint Nicholas?The Church uses the word "saint" just as the Bible does, both for Christians on earth who are in a state of grace and for the souls in heaven. From the Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 823 says in part, "The Church, then, is 'the holy People of God,' and her members are called 'saints.'""Her members" would be anyone (even from other denominations) who is baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and who believes in Christ. From the Catechism we read [again, in part]: 838 "The Church knows that she is joined in many ways to the baptized who are honored by the name of Christian, but do not profess the Catholic faith in its entirety or have not preserved unity or communion under the successor of Peter." Those "who believe in Christ and have been properly baptized are put in a certain, although imperfect, communion with
Saints and the Communion of Saints 2007-06-30 17:30:00 This is serious although it sounds sort of joking...do you belive she hears your prayers? I mean, in order for her to hear all the prayers she would have to be omnipotent and omnipresent right?Well, not necessarily. I don't really know how it works, but I do know that, in virtue of being spirits in heaven, they are aware of our prayers. I say "aware" because, technically speaking, words like "seeing" and "hearing" are inaccurate. A soul without a body (and thus without eyes and ears) can neither "see", nor "hear." Really, these words just reflect an awareness that the saints have of our prayers.There are various passages of Scripture that show that the angels are indeed aware of and respond to what happens to us on earth:Psa 34:7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.Mt 18:10 "See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that in heaven their angels always behold the face of my Father who is in heaven.Lk 15:7-10 Just so, I te Read more:Saints
, Communion
Who Needs Mary When We Have God? 2007-06-30 16:59:00 Here is a question about praying to Mary, from the HCR forum. In my next two posts, I will give my answers to some follow-up questions on the communion of saints.I read the explenation of why you pray to Mary, but why pray to her instead of praying to God. I pray to the Father, in the name of Jesus, as the Holy Siprit guides me. I see the explanation of the qualities of Mary, caring and understanding, but God is the reason we know the qualities, he revealed them to us. So why pray to Mary instead of praying directly to God as nonCatholics do?Well, there's no "instead of" in the prayer life of the Catholic. We pray to God and to Mary. Note however that this does not mean they are on the same level. A prayer to God is different from a prayer to Mary.We "pray to" God in the common sense of the phrase. In other words, a prayer to Him is an act of adoration and humility, and an acknowledgement that He alone is God. We "pray to" Mary in the Shakespearean sense of the phrase. In traditional Read more:Needs
Cover Your Eyes! 2007-06-29 13:22:00 I know, I know, I'm supposed to be working, but I just had to share this. According to the Mingle2 Blog Rating tool:When did I use the word "breast"?!?! Haha, anyway, it looks like "death" and "hell" are taboo topics now. God forbid we talk about the afterlife [sarcasm] Thankfully, "Hades" is safe. I wonder what it takes to get an NC-17 rating.... Read more:Cover
Just So You Know.... 2007-06-29 12:43:00 I won't be posting today (well, besides this post). I'll be spending the day making sure all the links in my sidebar are active and adding tags to all of my old posts. Eventually, I want to provide a list of subjects that I've covered, but I can't do that until I tag everything.Thank you for your patience.Pax Christi,phatcatholic
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